State warns consumers over attempts to steal their personal information

By: Mark Williams

The Columbus Dispatch - May 10, 2013 05:14 PM

The state is warning consumers about efforts by telephone con artists who are using confusion
over the president's healthcare law to attempt to steal their personal information.

The scammers, according to the Ohio Department of Insurance, says they're representatives of a
health-insurance exchange, Medicare or a "government program."

Under one part of the scam, callers claim that they are authorized to help people navigate the
health-insurance exchange created under the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, and that
they need to verify the person's name, address and Social Security number. Or they claim to be a
Medicare representative and need to verify information for a new Medicare card or that they need
the person's Medicare number to provide them with an updated medical emergency alert device.

The department said no one from an official government program should be calling and asking for
personal information, and consumers shouldn't be giving out their information to suspicious
callers.